State Foresters Concerned that President's Budget Will Fall Short in Meeting Conservation Goals on All Lands
Posted on Thursday, February 11, 2010State foresters responded to President Obama's February 1st budget proposal for FY2011 with some trepidation, warning that cuts to significant forestry programs will likely not meet national forest conservation goals. Even in a tight budget climate, the members of the National Association of State Foresters (NASF) believe it is critically important to make solid investments in key federal programs that help realize the potential of America's forests in helping address climate mitigation, renewable energy production and job creation.
All-Lands Policy Platform: NASF unveils seven-point plan for America's forests
Posted on Friday, November 6, 2009NASF has developed a "Seven-point Plan for America's Forests" to advance a shared vision for the nation's forests based on an all-lands approach to conservation, as outlined by USDA Secretary Vilsack earlier this year. NASF president Steven Koehn met with Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell today to share State Foresters' recommendations to the agency following discussions at the 2009 NASF Annual Meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico, last month.
America's trees and forests get boost in Interior spending bill
Posted on Tuesday, November 3, 2009 Trees and forests across the nation will benefit from the 2010 appropriations bill passed by Congress and signed by President Obama over the weekend. A $4.6 billion boost for the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Forest Service budgets includes a 16% increase for the Forest Service's State and Private Forestry programs, which help state forest resource professionals deliver vital assistance to forest landowners and communities to manage, protect, and improve their forests and green spaces.
Obama signs bill to help agencies manage skyrocketing wildfire suppression costs
Posted on Monday, November 2, 2009President Obama this weekend signed legislation that will bring a degree of relief to the nation's forests by helping federal agencies solve several of the top problems caused by the skyrocketing costs of wildfire suppression. The measure establishes a new approach to budgeting for costly wildfires, which continually drain the budgets of the Forest Service and Department of the Interior and lead to the transfer of hundreds of millions of dollars from other agency forest and land management priorities.
New Officers, Policy Decisions from State Foresters at 2009 NASF Annual Meeting
Posted on Tuesday, September 29, 2009NASF elected a new slate of officers to its governing Executive Committee and agreed on a number of national policy positions at the association's 87th Annual Meeting last week in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Steven W. Koehn, State Forester of Maryland, will lead NASF as president in 2009-2010. Mr. Koehn is the director of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Forest Service where he is responsible for the statewide delivery of all technical and financial forestry assistance programs on both public and private lands.
State Foresters Praise Interior Bill that Sets up FLAME Fund
Posted on Monday, September 28, 2009On Sept. 24, Senate leaders unanimously approved the creation of a separate source of funding for federal agencies to suppress large-scale wildfires via an amendment to the Interior Appropriations bill. The Federal Land Assistance Management and Enhancement Fund ("FLAME" fund) is designed to alleviate funding problems caused by emergency wildland fire costs and is supported by NASF and more than 100 other industry, environmental, outdoor recreation, and forestry organizations.
